


Pineapple Panties

by Mikazuki_Nika



Series: The Love that Binds Us [3]
Category: Fate/Grand Order
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Arc: Solomon (Fate/Grand Order), Canon Compliant, Competition, Eventual Smut, F/M, Flirting, Includes bonus art!, Ritsuka is slightly aged up here, Sexual Humor, Spoilers for Part One, Teasing, nearly shameless ritsuka, sneaky romance, title changed im sorry but i had to do it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-06-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:22:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23783833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mikazuki_Nika/pseuds/Mikazuki_Nika
Summary: In which two distant people begin playing a dangerous, too-intimate game where no one and everyone wins.
Relationships: Romani Akkiman/Fujimaru Ritsuka, Romani Archaman & Fujimaru Ritsuka, Romani Archaman/Fujimaru Ritsuka
Series: The Love that Binds Us [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1680904
Comments: 13
Kudos: 98





	1. First Tease - Good Morning

It starts as innocent curiosity.

Romani Archaman is a good man. Kind, intelligent, a little lazy but easy to encourage, with an innate talent for leadership. At first, she’d only admired him as her senior in Chaldea, then as her director. He’s easy to tease and quick to blush and constantly exhausted.

But also distant.

The thought had hit Ritsuka like a pin tinkling on the floor of a silent room.

_ Ah. This person… reminds me of myself. _

Yes, that’s right. That distant behavior is oh-so-familiar to Ritsuka. She’d been the same way before coming to Chaldea. Amiable and bright, but someone who stands just beyond a boundary, one that isn’t so easily crossed. Everyone is held close, but just out of arm’s reach. 

To avoid a deep relationship.

To avoid confrontations.

To avoid pain.

And so, as Ritsuka lets herself be pulled around by Mash’s eager hands and Da Vinci’s enthusiastic promises, her gaze fixes momentarily on the doctor.

Things begin to move in a different direction, in a more dangerous direction, one morning.

Ritsuka yawns, blinking her eyes blearily as she pads over to the bathrooms, a mug with a toothbrush in her hand. Turning the corner, she spies a head full of fluffy sunset-colored hair.

“Good morninggg, Doctor,” she says half-heartedly, turning towards the bathrooms.

“Eh?” he turns around. “Oh, good morning, Fujimaru-ch-  _ Fujimaru-chan?!” _

Ritsuka flinches at his scandalized tone. “...What’s wrong?”

Roman hastily covers his face with his gloved hands, but even from a good distance away, Ritsuka can see how quickly his face reddens. She spares a pitying glance towards his paperwork, which has fluttered to the floor as a result of his sudden movement.

_ “Where  _ are your  _ pants?!”  _ he squeaks, his voice rising an octave.

Ritsuka looks down at herself. 

_ Oh fuck,  _ she swears mentally. She’d accidentally come out of her room only wearing an oversized tee-shirt and her panties, which aren’t even one of her cute pairs. She frowns, realizing she hadn’t put on a bra either. Well, not that she particularly cares, the tee-shirt is sort-of long enough, but the doctor seems to.

“Whaaat,” Ritsuka lets out, making a quick decision. If she acts embarrassed here, it will only make things awkward between them for days to come. Forcing her blush down as far as she can, she laughs amiably. “That’s cute, Doctor. I wasn’t expecting such a virgin reaction from a man your age~”

With a teasing smile over her shoulder, one which the Doctor sees having dropped his hands in shock at her words, she slips into the bathrooms.

Her hand trembles slightly as she places her cup and toothbrush on the bathroom counter. Her heart is racing a bit too fast for her liking. Ducking her head, she looks shyly at the mirror, noting how red her face is rapidly becoming.

_ Shit,  _ she thinks to herself, her mind full of the image of Roman’s blushing face.  _ This might be bad… _

He really had been cute.

* * *

After that, because Ritsuka is also a distant person, she occasionally  _ mentions _ the incident in order to assure the Doctor that she really doesn’t mind what happened.

“Fujimaru-chan, could you take a look at these papers for me? I need them by tomorrow,” Roman says, flipping through the bundle in his hands. It seems every time Ritsuka sees him, he’s either carrying paperwork or toting around his tablet.

“Sure,” Ritsuka says lightly. Then, smiling lazily, she says, “But just ‘Ritsuka-chan’ is fine. You’ve already seen my panties, after all.”

The doctor freezes, mouth paused as he rolls his eyes up to look at her, his head still directed towards the papers in his hands.

Ritsuka maintains her smile, then holds her hand out expectantly. “The papers?”

At her prompt, the doctor passes the requested paperwork to her silently. She can tell he’s quickly gotten over being stunned by her words and is now silently considering whether she’d meant what she said.

But his cheeks are still red.

“Then… thanks in advance, Ritsuka-chan.”

Ritsuka’s smile grows a little brighter, a little wider.

* * *

The next time she mentions the underwear incident, it’s around more people.

“It seems like the heating at Chaldea is broken again,” the doctor complains, shoulders slumping.

Ritsuka blinks. “Is it? I haven’t noticed anything yet…” she looks around as if she’ll see the heated air itself.

“What?” Roman stares at her. “Do you not feel how hot it is at night?! There are so many complaints right now.”

Ritsuka sees the opportunity and absolutely does not miss it. She smirks, peering at him from under her lashes as she leans in slightly, speaking in a low tone, “Maybe if you slept in only your underwear and a tee-shirt like me, it wouldn’t be so bad, hmm, Doctor?”

She backs away, flashing him an exhilarated grin. She’s pulled exactly the reaction she wanted from him, preening as he flushes and tugs at the collar of his uniform uncomfortably. 

“Ritsuka-chan,” he murmurs, trying to frown sternly. Instead, his lips twist into a pout she can’t help but notice. “You really shouldn’t. You might catch a cold.”

She twirls a piece of her orange hair around a finger. “Not as long as the heater’s working overtime~” she sing-songs pointedly.

With that, he becomes determined to get it fixed and gets back to work.

* * *

It’s no longer necessary to mention the incident again for Ritsuka’s purposes. Somewhere deep inside herself, she knows that but… it’s become too fun to stop.

She bites her lip.

Her opportunity comes again in the form of an empty hallway, save for herself and an uncharacteristically silent Doctor Roman. He’s looking at her like he’s afraid she’s going to say something again, and he’s absolutely right, but she can’t just make her move randomly. No, it has to be smooth. 

To her alarm, Roman’s expression crinkles stubbornly, and she realizes he’s going to walk right past her without saying a word. Just as they draw near enough, Ritsuka opens her mouth, ready to ask in a teasing tone, “Did you sleep well last night, Doctor?” 

But he beats her to the punch.

“Pineapple panties.”

Ritsuka nearly  _ trips. _ She stops dead in her tracks and turns around, watching him go with her mouth hanging wide open. He’d muttered the words just as he passed by her, tone childish and stubborn.

The only thing that soothes her humiliation over her rapidly-reddening cheeks is his own red ears.

_ Oh… _ Ritsuka grins, wide and razor-sharp.  _ It is soooo on, Doctor. _


	2. Bonus Art - Pineapple Panties

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I drew this like super fast for y'all  
> I hope you can better imagine how much of a dork Ritsuka is because of this :))


	3. First Tease, Part Two - Untouchable

Chaldea is a balance beam that holds two extremes.

Romani Archaman has seen everything humanity has to offer. Boundless kindness and unabashed cruelty. The ever-encompassing warmth of light and the soul-freezing cold of darkness. The endless freedom to express one’s emotions and the self-inflicted restrictions of mob mentality.

Within Chaldea, the base of operations for Humanity’s last stand, these contradictions meet and separate like the ocean tide and edges of the earth.

Marisbury Animusphere had lived with the coldness of humanity in his chest, resolutely telling himself, “The ends justify the means.” All while constructing the one place on the planet capable of saving it from annihilation. 

And Fujimaru Ritsuka… 

Well, Fujimaru Ritsuka is the person he’s been waiting to meet for thousands of years. In his eyes, she is the embodiment of all of the things he has ever admired in humanity. Kindness, altruism, the freedom to laugh and the courage to cry.

Romani Archaman has seen everything humanity has to offer, but he hasn’t  _ felt  _ it all for himself.

So when Ritsuka - Ritsuka, the person he wishes he could have met sooner, Ritsuka, the person he can once again only watch helplessly, this time from behind a screen - pulls him in into a game he has  _ no business  _ playing with everything that is at stake-

Is it really so hard to believe that he might be a little too fascinated to stop her?

* * *

_ I… saw them. Pineapple panties,  _ he thinks to himself, blindly rounding the corner and crashing into a wall.

“Ow!” he lets out sharply, rubbing his nose pitifully. “Stupid Fujimaru-chan… are all young kids these days that shameless?” he mumbles to himself, pouting and hugging his stack of paperwork to his chest. He can feel his cheeks warming.

It’s not like… well, it’s not like he doesn’t  _ know  _ he’s just been teased.

This is Chaldea, a place where only the brightest and the best gather. But they’ve gathered atop a mountain 6,000 meters above the sea, in a place where stepping outside usually means turning into a popsicle. Nevertheless, those from long lines of mages have their pride and those from zero-backgrounds have something to prove, and so they all stay.

They all stay, despite the high-stress environment. They all stay, and they’re all humans, so there’s bound to be some… 

Well, Roman clears his throat self-consciously, he’d just spent the morning stuck between Sylvia and Dustin exchanging suggestive glances every time they ran into each other. And as a doctor, he’s had more than his fair share of, um, STI and pregnancy scares in his office.

_ But I didn’t raise Mash or Fujimaru-chan to be involved in those things!!  _ Roman cries mentally, temporarily bracing himself on the nearest wall in the corridor.  _ Nevermind the fact that I didn’t raise Fujimaru-chan! _

Roman stiffens as the image of Ritsuka’s smirk flashes through his mind. His face explodes into an array of red shades once more as he runs a gloved hand down his face and stops to cover his mouth.

_ So unexpected… _

* * *

“Romani!”

Roman jolts awake, sitting upright in his chair. He follows the hand that had slammed his desk up to Da Vinci’s miffed face. They’re in her workshop today.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” he says quickly, voice smothered by fatigue. “I fell asleep in the middle of our conversation again, didn’t I?”

Da Vinci’s offended expression melts into one of pity. “Is the maintenance staff still not finished fixing the heating?”

Roman shakes his head, reaching for his nearby cup of coffee and taking a sip of it, only to realize it’s gone cold. “We’re waiting for replacement parts to ship in, but the blizzard has been nonstop for the past 14 hours.” He sighs, leaning back in his chair. “I’ve been dealing with the complaints as best I can but everyone’s irritated because they can’t sleep comfortably.”

“And sleep is especially precious around here,” Da Vinci nods knowingly. She then fixes him with a look. “Speaking of, when was the last time  _ you  _ slept?”

His brows go up into a troubled expression and he grins jokingly. “A few minutes ago, until you woke me.”

At her deadpan stare, he lets out a self-satisfied chuckle and moves to stand. “I’ll be fine for a little while longer, Da Vinci-chan,” he says, tilting his head considerately towards her. “I still have some paperwork left, so…” 

Da Vinci waves him off with an air of disappointment. “Yes, yes, go collapse for all I care.”

_ She says that but she’s worried,  _ Roman smiles and picks up the stack of paperwork he’d brought with him in a failed attempt to motivate himself with a change of scenery.  _ We really can’t afford to digitize such sensitive information, but sometimes I wish… _

Sighing, he ambles down the halls towards the medical wing. Even after becoming Acting Director, he prefers his own office over the one both Marisbury and Olga-Marie had used. The staff always come to find him in his clinic instead anywa-

_ Ritsuka. _

Roman rips his gaze from the innocently approaching Master and directs it towards the paperwork in his hands, pushing aside the memories of her messy flame-colored bedhead and her sleepy golden gaze and the way her tee-shirt had hung so loosely from her shoulders.

Swallowing down the awkwardness in his throat, he says casually, “Fujimaru-chan, could you take a look at these papers for me? I need them by tomorrow.” His fingers tremble as he sifts through the pile in his hands.

Thankfully, and to his relief, she accepts his offer of normality. “Sure.” He relaxes. “But just ‘Ritsuka-chan’ is fine. You’ve already seen my panties, after all.”

Roman goes as rigid as a wooden board.  _ W-What? _ Gobsmacked, he looks at her, gaping slightly. But before he has any time to make sense of her actions, she holds out her hand expectantly towards him.

“The papers?” she prompts.

Her smile is too promising.

He takes a moment to wonder whether she really wanted him to drop honorifics with her. Slowly, keeping his gaze trained on her own so he can back out at the first sign of discomfort, he says, “Then… thanks in advance, Ritsuka-chan.”

When her smile only grows pleased, dawning brightly on her expression like the sunrise, something in his chest twists uncomfortably.

* * *

The next time, he finds himself trapped by her proximity. Her eyes are too close, far too close, peering at him from under long black lashes. On the surface of the molten gold, he can see his reflection.

“Maybe if you slept in only your underwear and a tee-shirt like me, it wouldn’t be so bad, hmm, Doctor?”

Heat immediately floods his system. He tugs at the collar of his uniform, feeling choked. Each of her teasing sentences, her pleased smiles, her unintentionally attractive appearances… He won’t admit it, but he’s almost disappointed that she’s not serious.

The thought calms him.

“Ritsuka-chan,” he says, going for stern. “You really shouldn’t. You might catch a cold.”

He catches the way her hand comes up to play with her hair in a cliched expression of flirtatious body language. “Not as long as the heater’s working overtime~” she sing-songs.

Roman vows to himself to hound the maintenance staff for repairs as  _ soon  _ as the shipment comes in.

* * *

Luckily for everyone at Chaldea, except for Ritsuka who hadn’t experienced any discomfort, the blizzard delaying their heating repairs came to end in the late afternoon. That night, after being reassured by the maintenance staff that the repairs would be completed by the morning, Roman allows himself a few hours of rest.

He chooses to crash in a bed available in the clinic instead of returning to his own room, and although he is exhausted to the point of falling asleep immediately, he lies awake for a few moments longer.

_ Ritsuka-chan is teasing me too much,  _ he breathes, letting his tired eyeballs relax.  _...But why? _

At this, his eyelids flutter open once more. He finds patterns in the ceiling absently as the girl’s recent behavior turns in his mind. If Ritsuka were only trying to cover her embarrassment, they could pretend nothing had happened at all and put the entire underwear incident behind them.

_...It must be my reactions,  _ Roman finally admits to himself. He’s been told by all sorts of people, both men and women, and in various situations, that his reactions are “so cute” or “too funny.” He knows he’s easy to tease, but he can’t help it.

_ If that’s the case, then if I want this to stop, I can’t let Ritsuka-chan keep egging me on.  _ His eyelids flutter closed as he makes his decision.  _ I am her Commander, after all. It just isn’t appropriate. _

He turns onto his side, curling in on himself.

_ And besides…  _

To him, Fujimaru Ritsuka is an untouchable existence.

* * *

The next morning, feeling refreshed from both his sleep and his fool-proof plan to get Ritsuka back under control, the doctor goes about his day cheerfully.

The heating has been successfully fixed as of 5 am this morning as well.

So when he sees Ritsuka coming down the hall, he very resolutely decides he won’t give her the satisfaction of seeing him blush over the same incident anymore. Instead, he looks directly at her, and then stubbornly keeps his mouth shut.

_ The best way to avoid it this time is to not start a conversation in the first place! _

He sees the exact moment both surprise and understanding dawn on Ritsuka’s expression and preens with self-satisfaction. With this he’s secured his victory and successfully overcome her teasi-

_ She’s smiling! _

Roman panics internally, realizing that just because he chooses not to start a conversation with her doesn’t mean that  _ she  _ can’t start one instead. Mentally facepalming at the fact that he’d missed something  _ so obvious,  _ he scrambles to switch tactics.

But a flash of frustration rises up in him instead.

At Chaldea, for all the extra stress he’s been under the past few days.

At Ritsuka, for teasing him when she has  _ no idea  _ what could happen.

At himself, for being so distracted by her when so much is at stake.

The words are out of his mouth before he can stop them.

“Pineapple panties.”

He marches right past her and continues down the hall without looking back, and it isn’t until he rounds the corner towards the command room that the flash of emotion that had fueled him abruptly runs out.

“GAAAAAAAAH!”

Romani slams his head into a wall, this time for real.

_ What are you doing, Romani Archaman?! What happened to ‘untouchable existence’ and being the adult in this situation?!  _ His face is dangerously hot and his forehead is throbbing from the pain, but his humiliation over the situation hurts a lot more.

Roman groans, burying his face in his hands. “I’m an idiot…” 

He can’t even imagine what will happen from now on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is essentially the same as chapter one, only from Roman's perspective, because I wanted to show _how_ he came to the point where he joins in on Ritsuka's game, as well as the confusing feelings he has. The next chapter will have 100% new content, so please look forward to it!!


	4. Second Tease: RAF

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What does R.A.F. stand for?

If Ritsuka were to try and explain why she reaches for someone she knows she cannot have, it would surely end in failure.

“Good morning, senpai.”

“Ah,” Ritsuka jolts out her daydreams and turns around. There, smiling as usual first thing in the morning is Mash, her shoulders squared with earnest preparation. “Good morning, Mash. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes I did,” she says, tilting her head with a smile. The pair of them are only a few paces away from the control room, ready to check-in for the day.

“Sorry,” the doctor says, not even five minutes later. A lopsided smile appears on his face as he passes up a shrug. “You’re out of luck - it’s a slow day today. There is still some time left before we’re prepared to Rayshift you to your next Singularity.”

“I see…” Mash says, her shoulders relaxing. Then, turning to Ritsuka with a friendly smile, “It seems like long gaps between Singularities won’t be so unusual for us, right senpai?”

Ritsuka shrugs. “It can’t be helped. We should use this chance to train and get plenty of rest instead.”

“I agree,” Mash nods her head. Then, turning back to the doctor. “Please call for us immediately if there’s anything.”

“You know I will,” Roman says amiably.

Ritsuka spends a moment too long observing his smile. ... _ How much of it is a mask? _

The girls turn away, heading for the doors once more as Da Vinci’s voice rings out from somewhere at the forefront of the command room, “If you’re free then you should come and take a look at my inventions!”

Mash walks a little faster, grasping Ritsuka’s arm.

* * *

After morning training is completed, Ritsuka and Mash meet up again in the cafeteria. Servants and staff alike mingle in the hall the size of a grand ballroom, chatting noisily as they enjoy their meals.

Ritsuka slides into a seat with a sigh, her tray clattering lightly as she sets it on the table. “Today’s training was especially tough!” she complains.

Mash chuckles and picks up a fork, digging into a salad. “I believe they’re trying to keep you from getting rusty, senpai.”

“They’re trying too hard!” Ritsuka protests, but the smile on her face tells Mash that she’s actually enjoying it.

As they eat, a few Servants swing by to greet them and even a few staff members give words of encouragement. Ritsuka is the most popular person at Chaldea after all. Eventually, they wrap up their meals and head out into the corridors once more.

“Da Vinci seemed as cheerful as ever this morning, but the doctor had dark circles under his eyes again,” Mash says casually. “Even though the issue with the heating has been resolved.”

Ritsuka hums thoughtfully. “I noticed that, too. He said that things are slowing down right now, so why doesn’t he rest?”

“Doctor Roman is the head of both the medical facilities and Chaldea as a whole,” Mash explains. “Normally, a newly-hired doctor would be able to share his work, but…” 

At this, Ritsuka falls silent. Ever since the Grand Order began - ever since the explosion in the command room - they’ve been critically understaffed. It’s easy to forget about the people asleep and the non-existent outside world. At that time, she had been so overwhelmed by how fast things were moving that she could only focus on what was in front of her, forget about taking the time to sit down and think about Chaldea and its staff, but now… 

“It feels like the doctor is missing something important,” Ritsuka murmurs.

“Eh?”

She pushes a small laugh out through her nose. “No, it’s nothing,” Ritsuka waves off her previous mumbling awkwardly. “Say, are there any records about the doctor here in Chaldea?” she asks.

Mash tilts her head. “Records?” she asks.

“Like pictures! Or something…” Ritsuka says, suddenly realizing how she must sound. Scratching her cheek with an index finger out of embarrassment, she carries on, “Lately, I’ve been playing a game with the doctor and I was thinking some embarrassing old photos would be just what I needed to bully him a little!”

Surprised, Mash stares at her for a moment before giggling into a fist. Ritsuka reddens at her laughter. “‘Bullying’ the doctor, you say?”

“Wha-What is it?” Ritsuka crosses her arms, pouting. “You think I can’t? I’ll have you know that I’m winning our game right now.”

Mash laughs even harder, shaking her head. Gradually, she calms and then explains, “I’m sorry, it’s just that I’ve never heard anyone talk about him that way besides Da Vinci-san. It surprised me!”

Blinking, Ritsuka’s arms fall to her sides again. “Does that mean the doctor doesn’t have any friends?”

_ He is all alone. Somehow, I…  _

At this, Mash gives a thoughtful hum, then shrugs with a helpless smile. “I’m not sure,” she says. “I don’t know that much about him, come to think of it…” Brightening, she goes on, “But I’m sure you’ll find something in the archives.”

“Good idea,” Ritsuka agrees. Then, grinning mischievously, “When I emerge victorious from my battle, I’ll let you know!”

“I’ll be waiting for the good news,” Mash nods, snickering.

With that promise made, the girls go their separate ways.

* * *

_ Records, huh… _

This hadn’t been what she was expecting.

Every staff member at Chaldea has a personal file, which Ritsuka is technically not supposed to lay even a finger on, but she’s not looking for anything like that. In the first place… there  _ is no _ personal file on the staff member Romani Archaman.

_ Is there a side room here or something…?  _ Ritsuka peers around the dusty shelves of the archive, smiling nervously when she accidentally meets the eye of the staff member on duty at the help desk.  _ Come to think of it, I don’t see any of the previous directors’ files either…  _

Concluding that the files on the upper chain of command must be in another room, most likely with higher security, Ritsuka heaves a sigh. Then, poking her head out from between the shelves, she decides to take her chances and approaches the staff.

“Um…” Blushing lightly, Ritsuka shyly stares at the woman behind the counter, who looks up from her computer at the sound of her voice.

“Hi there, Fujimaru-san,” she greets warmly, straightening. “How can I help you?”

Relaxing slightly, Ritsuka’s smile comes a little easier. “I’ve been thinking I wanted to know more about what Chaldea was like before I came here… I asked someone for some pictures or something but they said I might find what I’m looking for in here?”

“Ah,” the woman nods, smiling with an air of wisdom. “You’ve come to the right place. Actually, it’s not a formal document, exactly, but…” As she comes out from around the help desk and gestures towards herself, Ritsuka catches her name, Maya, on the ID hanging around her neck. “Follow me over here.”

_ Woah, there’s actually something?  _ Blinking in surprise, Ritsuka chases closely after the staff member through the aisles towards a secluded corner in the area.

Smiling secretly at Ritsuka from behind a wave of long black hair, Maya stops at a shelf and gently pulls out a dark book with thick binding. “This must be it,” she says, passing it over to her.

The book is navy blue and lacks any sort of writing on its cover or binding. Confused, Ritsuka opens it up. “...An album?!” Brightening, she looks up at Maya again.

She smiles pridefully, crossing her arms. “Yup! The regular staff around here call this album one of Chaldea’s Seven Wonders.”

Ritsuka gapes, hugging the album to her chest. “What? Why? Seven wonders?!”

“Because…” her expression twists with a dark smirk. “No one knows where it came from.”

Fascinated, Ritsuka begins to flip through the photo album. “What do you mean?”

“We don’t know who started keeping this album and why, but it’s been here for years, and somehow, it isn’t full yet. Some of the pictures inside are even taken at impossible angles or times. It’s one of our seven wonders  _ because  _ there’s so little information about it,” she explains, pointing out several pictures here and there as Ritsuka nods along.

“Ah-” Ritsuka pauses in surprise. “Da Vinci-chan as the  _ Mona Lisa? _ And over here is a picture of the time Mash and I took a picnic in the simulator with Fou… but, we were alone? Who took this picture…?”

“You see? Isn’t it mysterious?” The staff member grins and Ritsuka can’t help but nod in agreement. Suddenly, she deflates a little. “Well, it’s called a seven wonder but actually, I’m pretty sure the staff themselves are the ones adding photos to this.”

“I see…” Ritsuka says slowly, her eyes trailing over the pictures and taking them in. “Oh, here’s one of Mash together with the doctor and Da Vinci-chan! Let’s see here… an anniversary?”

“That’s right! Fujimaru-chan hasn’t partied with us yet, huh? Well, it hasn’t been a year since you joined us.”

“Is there a party for Chaldea’s anniversary every year?” Ritsuka asks curiously.

“Yup,” the woman nods. “It’s a small thing but everyone gets cake. I’m sure you’ll like it! Anyways…” she glances over her shoulder back towards her desk. “I can’t stick around for too long, but I hope this has what you’re looking for!”

Grinning brightly, Ritsuka lets out a sunny, “Thanks!”

As Maya takes her leave, Ritsuka’s eyes land on a photo.

_ Oh… there you are, you cheeky little bastard. Just the kind of picture I was looking for! _

Humming cheerfully, she gently removes the photo and slides the album back into its place on the shelf. “I’ll be borrowing this~”

She dances out of the archives with an evil smirk.

* * *

It isn’t until Romani Archaman has had his morning coffee that he realizes something is terribly wrong.

People are staring at him.

Self-consciously, he takes an anxious look at himself in the nearest shiny surface he can find.  _ Is there something on my face? _

Various staff members have been sneaking glances at him through the morning’s procedures. Some with curiosity, some with confusion, and some with… he’s not sure, but those people have red faces.

He realizes why during lunch.

A group of two women and a man corner him before he makes it to the dining hall, the man, Lukas, if he remembers correctly, trying to act uninterested as the two girls, Melissa and Eundong, whispering heatedly between themselves before Eundong is pushed towards him.

“U-Um…!”

“Yes?!” Romani yelps, immediately going stiff.  _ Is this that one anime trope where a girl brings her friends for moral support during her confession?! _

Eundong blushes heavily, pressing her fingers to her mouth and staring at him with starry eyes. “Director… is there going to be a reprint of the Romani Archaman Fanbook?”

Romani goes cold.

“I…” he blinks incredulously, mind struggling to catch up with this reality. “Would you excuse me for a moment?” Ducking around her, the orange-haired doctor goes running down the halls.

“Director~!” comes Eundong’s wail from behind him, but Roman is already flying around the corner.

He crashes into the door of Da Vinci’s workshop with a metallic thud, backtracking for a moment to slam his palm against the reader and allow the door to hiss open.

“You  _ promised!” _ he squeaks, red in the face for multiple reasons.

Sitting peacefully at her workbench, enjoying finger sandwiches and coffee, is Da Vinci. She sips calmly at her cup. “My, news certainly travels fast!” she exclaims innocently.

“Don’t give me that!” Roman snaps, panicked. The door behind him slides shut and he moves forward, placing his gloved palms on the table. “We agreed you wouldn’t circulate the photos from the Halloween photoshoot anymore!”

“Maa maa, calm down for a moment! I most certainly kept my promise,” Da Vinci says, gesturing for him to take a seat.

“How?!” Roman howls.

_ “I’m  _ not the one spreading the pictures from the photoshoot this time,” Da Vinci smirks as the door to the room hisses open once more. Glancing around him, she says, “Isn’t that right, Ritsuka-chan?”

“Oh  _ no,”  _ Roman gasps in disbelief, turning around in his chair.

Ritsuka smiles at him pleasantly, but her presence gives him chills. In her hands is a  _ very  _ familiar magazine. “Oh  _ yes,” _ she returns.

“Ritsuka-chan, how could you?!” he wails.

The fiery Master slides into a seat, delicately playing with the pages of the glossy magazine Roman wished would spontaneously combust. “How could I  _ not?”  _ Ritsuka asks innocently. “There are so many people in the staff who want to see these pictures, you know? As a fellow fan, how could I ignore their needs?”

“Fa...n?” Roman chokes out. 

“Of course,” Ritsuka breathes, playing at being shocked at any other possibility. She then looks at him dead on, smiling sincerely. “The doctor is pretty handsome, you know~”

He sputters, his face burning even brighter as Da Vinci chortles into her sandwiches, seeming to enjoy the show. “Ritsuka-chan, you’re so bold! Giving this thirty-something doctor a thrill.”

Scrambling for even ground, Roman crosses his arms and nods stiffly. “That’s right, Ritsuka-chan. You shouldn’t tease adults, though I appreciate your compliments.”

“Oh?” Ritsuka smirks. “But I’m an adult too, remember?”

“A new one! And I’m still older than you, plus I am your Acting Commander!”

Da Vinci smiles to herself as they argue, sneakily sliding the magazine over the table to herself. She flips idly through the glossy pages, finishing off the last of her coffee. Then, before the battle waging above her head can get any more out of hand, she clears her throat. “Poor Eundong and Lukas, they were really looking forward to a reprint.”

Roman’s blush never seems to leave his face, but his mind catches up with her words. “Wait…” Ritsuka slides into her seat again with a smile. “It’s  _ not _ being reprinted?”

“Of course not,” Ritsuka snorts.

“Yes,” Da Vinci nods her head. Then, from behind a hand, she slyly adds, “Ritsuka-chan just wanted a copy all to herself.”

“Da Vinci-chan!” Ritsuka cries, but she takes the magazine back nonetheless. Hugging it to her chest, she hops out of her chair, pouting and unable to hide the redness rising to her own cheeks. As the door to Da Vinci’s workshop slides open once more for Ritsuka’s escape, she mutters, “It was just a prank, I wasn’t going to do something like that without consent…”

The door hisses closed, its sound filling the now silent workshop. Da Vinci peers at Roman from the corner of her eye. He is staring at the door, a gloved hand pressed over the lower half of his face in embarrassment. She can almost read his mind from that expression.

_ Aha~ A thirty-something doctor’s thrill, indeed. _

* * *

_ Gosh, Da Vinci-chan… she didn’t have to expose me like that. _

Ritsuka slips into the safety of her room, taking a moment to calm down. 

_ Thanks to that, I don’t even know who won that round… ugh. _

Running a hand through her hair, she heaves a sigh and belly flops onto her bed like a whale in mid-air crashing back into the sea. After a moment, her fingers curl around the nearly-forgotten fanbook, and Ritsuka pauses. She flips through the pages almost hastily, freezing when she finds what she is looking for: a two-page spread titled  _ Fireworks. _

Sure, she loved  _ Count Romani Archaman’s Hospitality  _ just as much as the next fan, but… 

It is so rare to see the doctor smile so widely, so genuinely, the way he does in this photo.

A smile tugs at Ritsuka’s lips.

_ I think I won today, after all. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahaha~ Somehow this came out cuter than I intended it to. Ritsuka-chan be so obstinate sometimes~  
> Your comments and kudos are _greatly_ appreciated!!


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